Page 35 of Carler

“There is some information on that line. The Emperor at the time was heartbroken when they were never able to reach them after they left the planet. It wasn't an exploration mission; they were just going to one of the other planets to take charge. The planet was in rebellion, and everyone thought they had taken down the ship and killed everyone aboard. Since there was no proof, they felt like that crime had never been brought to justice. It seems that something very different happened. Correcting that wrong information will be a good thing. “I wish we could find where they were laid to rest so they could be moved to where royalty rests.”

“They made a home here, and I am sure they were part of the rulers of my planet. Whether this was where they were intended to be or not, they made the best of it since many here seem to have dragon blood.” Viv observed.

Was this a mystery solved, or would it create even more mysteries? She was sure that she had heard that Space Flight had come a long way since the days when that ship must have landed on this planet. So how or why did it happen? Just more questions, even though one was solved. That was probably where the stories of dragons had come from. Eventually, after they bred for hundreds of years with the local inhabitants, their ability to shift must have been compromised. Their history was no longer passed down. No one knew. But there had truly been dragons.

Carler had told her that the dragon blood needed to be present, or nothing could be done to help somebody shift to a dragon. Mates back then would have been able to ride their mates into the skies but would not have been able to shift themselves. Viv was sure they would track her family tree to see what else they could shake out. Those who had already changed would also have relatives they would try to lure into a mating.

She wasn't sure how she felt about that. She guessed there was not much to say about it if they had the right to make a choice. If they were forced, that would be different. She had seen no signs that they would force anyone into anything.

“Can I take a picture of it to send to the Emperor?” Carler asked. “He will want to get some historians working on this to find out who was on the ship.”

“I suppose. I knew it was valuable partly because it is so old and unusual. I had no idea it would change the history of this planet and yours.”

She handed it to him, and he laid it down on the desk and took several pictures. He went over to his computer, and she assumed that he had some way to send the pictures to his Emperor—his Emperor and now hers—a far distant relative that she had no idea what to think of.

“Do you want it kept somewhere safer? I can give you access to an individual safe, or we could even go up to the ship that will be taking us away at the end of the week, and you can put it in one of the safes they have on board.”

“Do you believe that now that its presence is known, someone will try to take it?” Viv asked.

“It's possible. That medallion is said to have mysterious powers. No one explained exactly what they were, but they made it sound powerful and unmatchable. Whether it has any of these powers or not, there will always be some people that believe that it does that will do anything to get it.”

“Everything has changed in my life so much. I never thought about the medallion much because it's so heavy it was impractical to wear. Now suddenly, it's important because of my new life. Otherwise, I might not have ever known exactly what it was. That begs whether it's best to know or live in ignorance.”

“You tried to seek answers too much to say you wouldn't want to know.” Carler accused.

“That's true. Sometimes not knowing can be fatal.”

“Let's go to lunch, and I'll carry it in my pocket since my pocket is larger than yours. Just leave your purse here like you usually do.”

“Makes sense. Let's go," Viv agreed.

They headed out for a lovely lunch, almost like a celebration. It was a steak meal with several choices of sides and, in the end, an incredible dessert. All told, they were gone about an hour before they went back. When they stepped into the room, Viv was shocked. The items inside her purse were strung all over the room, and everything on top of the desks was tossed off carelessly. All the drawers were empty, and the items inside added to the floor's mess. It seemed her mate had been right, and they needed extra precautions for the medallion.

“Maybe you should start wearing it?” Carler asked. “Now that you are a dragon, the fact that it's heavy won't bother you anymore.”

“What if they try to kill me for it?”

“It is said to give those wearing it protection.”

“Are you willing to risk my life to find out if that's true?” She asked peevishly.

“The only thing that's going to stop them from coming after you now is if they get it some other way.”

She knew he was right, but she was still pissed off. What a mess! Getting her room cleaned up would take a while, so they started immediately. It wasn't like they had to prepare to fly to another Galaxy by the end of the week. Maybe they needed to remove some of the stuff and pack it away for Kareth and Landra. They would understand, and the box would just be moved somewhere easy enough for them to return.

“I agree with you.”

“What?”

“You said that out loud," Carler observed.

She hadn't intended to. This had just upset her terribly. Her personal space had been violated, and now they needed to figure out who had done it. They needed to be punished because this just wasn't right. Her dragon sighed and was also aggravated and wanted to play with someone. That wouldn't happen because she was sure her dragon would kill them.

“Let's get this cleaned up, and then we will put your prize somewhere where it will be harder to find. After that, we'll quit early and enjoy some time in our room.”

Our mate wants to fuck us. Her dragon purred.

I believe you are right. That might just make me feel better.

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